Introduction: When a conflict arises between
two members of The USGenWeb Project that cannot be resolved informally,
either party has the option of requesting a review of the dispute by
the Grievance Committee. The final decision of the Grievance Committee
is binding on all parties.

A - Committee Membership, Qualifications &
Appointments.

Membership:

The Grievance Committee shall consist of seven members of The USGenWeb
Project in good standing. The panel must include a State Coordinator
and a member of the Special projects and three County
Coordinators/Local Coordinators who have not served as State
Coordinator or in a national level position within the last three
years. The National Coordinator is an ex officio member of the
Grievance Committee and is not eligible for assignment as the committee
member overseeing an accepted grievance. In the event that a member of
the Grievance Committee is one of the parties involved in the dispute
or has a personal interest in the dispute, that Committee Member shall
retire from involvement with any aspect of that grievance.

In the event that a Grievance Committee member changes positions in the
USGenWeb Project during their term, they may remain as a representative
of the position for which they were appointed until the end of their
term. This does not apply in the case of the committee member's
election to the USGenWeb Advisory Board, at which time they would be
required to resign and a new representative appointed after a call for
volunteers from within the project to fill the seat.

A Grievance Committee member may be temporarily removed, upon a vote of
two-thirds (2/3) of the committee, for unwillingness to serve in the
capacity for which the person was accepted, releasing information on a
grievance presently before the board and/or not answering three (3)
roll calls.

The member will be sent a letter by the Grievance Chair stating the
reason for the temporary removal. During this time the member will be
unsubscribed from the Grievance Committee mail list. The member will
then be given 72 hours in which to respond. If no answer is received
then the member will be removed without recourse. If a response is
received, after reading the reply and discussion of said, the Grievance
Committee will vote on whether or not to permanently remove the member.

Qualifications:

Volunteers for the Grievance Committee will be required to meet certain
minimum requirements for service.

Volunteers must have a minimum of one year's continuous service as a
Member in Good Standing of either a State Project or a recognized
Special Project of the USGenWeb Project.

Volunteers may not have been a party in a grievance for a minimum of
two (2) years prior to volunteering for the Grievance Committee nor be
currently involved in a grievance.

Appointments:

The Advisory Board will vote to make the initial appointments to the
Grievance Committee after soliciting volunteers for the committee,
posting their qualifications for comment by USGenWeb Project members on
the BOARD-L, each of the Regional lists, and any other official project
lists deemed necessary. Of the initial appointments four (4) will be
for two-year terms, and three (3) for one-year terms. The Advisory
Board will appoint the Grievance Chair for the initial term for a
period of one year.

Future vacancies within the Grievance Committee will be filled by
USGenWeb Project members in the following manner: The Chair will
solicit volunteers for the position, and post their qualifications for
comment. Volunteers will be chosen by a vote of Grievance Committee
members, and presented to the Advisory Board for approval.

Future appointments as Chair will be by vote of the Grievance Committee
members. Elections will be for a two-year term.

B - Committee Business

Two e-mail lists will be established for Grievance Committee business.
The first list will be archived, and will be available for all
interested project volunteers to subscribe to on a read-only basis. The
list will be used to announce committee vacancies/appointments, to
request volunteers for open positions, and for discussions of policy
and/or procedures related to the Grievance Committee. This list will
also be used for Grievance Committee assignments and announcements. No
discussion of specific grievances will be held on the public list.

The second list will not be archived and is considered strictly
confidential. Only Committee members and the National Coordinator (NC),
as ex-officio member of the committee will be subscribed to this list.
(The NC will be subscribed in read-only mode.) Any questions or
concerns related to specific grievances will be raised ONLY on the
confidential list. The confidential list may NOT be used for public
business, or in an effort to avoid public disclosure. To avoid the
appearance of conflict of interest or impropriety in the case of a
grievance being filed against the National Coordinator, the NC would be
unsubscribed from the confidential list and another Advisory Board (AB)
member will be subscribed until the grievance process is completed. The
National Coordinator will not be eligible to vote on matters related to
specific grievances, but will have full voting participation in other
Grievance Committee business.

C - Duties of Grievance Committee Members.

Grievance Committee members act as administrators/advisors to volunteer
mediators and arbitrators, following complaints assigned to them
throughout the grievance process. Should a complaint progress to an
arbitration hearing, the Grievance Committee member will be responsible
for acting as Chair for the hearing. Grievance Committee members will
not take direct part in mediations under their guidance, and will not
have a vote in hearings they may chair. Grievance Committee members are
responsible for tracking the progress of complaints until resolved, and
making status reports to the Chair and/or Committee as may be
necessary, with a final status report upon resolution of the complaint.

Additional duties of the Grievance Committee include:

1. Recruit and train volunteer mediator/arbitrators;
2. Review incoming grievances to determine compliance with Sections F2
and F3 of these procedures to determine if they should be assigned to
volunteers;
3. Review the outcome when a process is completed.

D - Duties of Chair.

The Chair will be responsible for receiving complaints, numbering them,
and assigning them to a Grievance Committee member to administer. The
Chair will also be responsible for maintaining a list of volunteer
members to act as mediators, as well as a list of volunteer
arbitrators, and assigning them to complaints as needed. The Chair will
make a Quarterly Report to the Advisory Board on the number of
complaints received and resolved, and provide other information as
needed by the Board.

E - Confidentiality.

Because grievances are considered personnel matters, all volunteers
(committee members, mediators and arbitrators) must state that they are
willing to abide by strict confidentiality requirements.

Confidentiality begins when the grievance is filed with the Committee.
All discussion regarding the issues during the grievance process is to
be considered privileged and private, and shall not be disclosed during
or after the process by either the team or either party, except as
allowed by these procedures.

The mediation process is confidential, and parties involved must agree
to uphold that confidentiality unless ALL parties agree to the contrary.

The arbitration process is considered confidential, and parties
involved must agree to uphold that confidentiality unless ALL parties
(including volunteer arbitrators and witnesses) agree to the contrary.

Members of the Committee must also state that they understand that
violation of this confidentiality agreement will mean immediate
expulsion from the Grievance Committee and may result in determination
of Member Not in Good Standing by the Advisory Board. Once declared a
MNIGS, the former Grievance Committee member may not serve on the
Grievance Committee again.

In the event of a party to the grievance breaking confidentiality, for a first violation, the party will be sent a letter by the Grievance Committee Chair reminding the party that there can be no discussion of the grievance from the time that the grievance has been filed. A second violation will terminate the process and a finding will be made against the violator. If the Grievant is the one who has breached confidentiality, the grievance may not be re-filed in any form.

F - Grievance Process

1 - Who may file: The grievance process is
initiated, when a complaint is made by any of the following:

1. A member of the USGenWeb Project, filing on his/her own behalf,
within 30 days of incident, or discovery of incident;
2. A former USGenWeb member within 30 days of termination of membership
either with the Project, or within a specific State or Special Project;
3. A transcriber or an accepted contributing researcher, within 30 of
incident, or discovery of incident.

In the case of two or more individuals forming one party, the group
will select one spokesperson to act on behalf of the others.

2 - Types of grievances: The following types
of grievances will be handled by the Grievance Committee:

1. Grievances against the USGenWeb Project, the standing committees or
Special Projects of the USGenWeb Project, or the USGenWeb Project
Advisory Board. Grievances by a State Project or Special Project
against another State Project or Special Project. Grievances against
USGenWeb Project standing committees must be against the Chair or a
specific member of the standing committee.
2. Grievances by a USGenWeb Project member against another USGenWeb
Project member who is not located within the same State or Special
project.
3. Grievances by a USGenWeb Project member against another USGenWeb
Project member located within the same State or Special Project when
there is no local Grievance Procedure to follow in that State or
Special Project.
4. Grievances against the local grievance project of a State or Special
Project having its own member-approved process for resolving
grievances. 1. The Grievance Committee is limited to reviewing the
determination made by the local grievance process and entering a
determination whether the local procedures for the grievance process
were followed within that State or Special Project. The Grievance
Committee will not re-hear the complaint once it has been handled at
the local level.
5. Other specific grievances on a case-by-case basis when there may not
be a reasonable alternative at the local level for resolution of the
dispute, solely at the discretion of the Grievance Committee as a whole.

3 - Required information: The initial
complaint should be brought to the Chair, and must include the
following information:

1. Full name & project affiliation of the member bringing the
complaint;
2. Full name & project affiliation of the member the complaint
is against;
3. The exact nature of the complaint, including the date that the
incident occurred;
4. What steps or actions the member has taken to this point, if any, to
resolve the situation outside of the grievance process;
5. What actions/reparations that the project member desires as a result
of the grievance;
6. A specific citation or reference to the USGenWeb Project Policy,
Procedure, or By-Law, or XXGenWeb Project, Policy, Procedure, or By-Law
which is alleged to have been violated.

4 - Committee Review. Upon receiving the
initial complaint, the Chair will assign it a number, and appoint one
of the permanent committee members to review the complaint to determine
whether it meets the requirements outlined in subsections 1 - 3 of this
section. The review of the complaint will result in an "accept" or
"reject" determination from the Committee Member assigned. The
recommendation and the reasons therefore, shall be provided to the
Grievance Committee as a whole, and voted upon.

The review at this level should assume that the facts stated in the
complaint are true, and the determination of the viability of the
grievance made based upon the assumption that the complaint is true and
a review of the by-laws, policies, or procedures alleged to have been
violated.

If rejected, the member filing the grievance shall be informed that the
grievance was not accepted and the reason(s) that it was not accepted.
If the grievance was not accepted due to the initial complaint not
fulfilling the requirements of subsections 1 - 3 of this Section, the
member will have ten (10) days from the date of notification to amend
or correct any deficiencies in the initial complaint and resubmit it to
the Grievance Committee Chair.

* No third-party grievance will be accepted. The member who is
aggrieved must be the one to file the grievance.
* Non-specific complaints, those that do not allege a violation of a
specific by-law, policy, or procedure, will be rejected with prejudice.
* Any member filing two (2) non-specific and/or third party grievances
within a one (1) year period will have their name submitted to the
Advisory Board with a recommendation that they be declared a Member Not
in Good Standing for a period of one year.
* Any member who files two (2) non-specific and/or third party
grievances within any one (1) year period for a third time will not be
allowed to file any grievance for a period of five (5) years.

If accepted as a viable grievance, the parties shall be so informed and
a Committee Member, a volunteer mediator and two volunteer
arbitrators assigned. The Chair shall advise the parties of the
identity of the members of the teamonce they are assigned.

5 - Objections: It shall be the responsibility
of the parties to the dispute to raise the issue of bias or conflict by
a mediator or arbitrator. This shall be done privately to the assigned
Committee Member. All claims of bias or conflict must be raised prior
to the beginning of the mediation process, and before the
mediation/arbitration team members are subscribed to the mail
list. If either party objects to more than one member of the team, that
party must lodge all objections at the same time.

If an objection is raised to a team member, that member or members
shall be dismissed and a new team member or members assigned without
the necessity for any proof of bias or prejudice. The identity of the
party raising the objection shall not be revealed to any team member.
The replacement team member(s) will be the final members of the team
and will then be subscribed to the mail list unless the opposing side
lodges an objection to a replacement member. Once the team is seated on
the list and the process initiated, no further objection may be raised
as to partiality, bias, or conflict, and a team member may only be
removed on his or her own request.

There can be no objection filed against the Grievance Committee
Representative as that person is there to aid the mediator and
arbitrators in the rules of the Grievance Committee and does not take
an active part in the mediation/arbitration processes.

6 - The duties and responsibilities of the team shall be:

1. To provide a full and fair opportunity for both parties to present
their side of the dispute and present relevant material in support of
their position.
2. To review the material provided by both parties, to ask questions of
the parties, and seek clarification to further understand the issues in
dispute.
3. To assist the parties in identifying the source of the dispute, the
options for resolution, common ground between the parties, and to
explore the possibility of an amiable agreement for resolution of the
dispute that will benefit both parties and The USGenWeb Project.
4. To notify the Grievance Committee that mediation has been successful
and the exact nature of the agreement the parties have come to and have
agreed to abide by.
5. Or, to notify the Grievance Committee that mediation has not been
successful.

7 - Mediation: When the team is seated, the
parties shall be so advised by the Mediator. The parties shall have
seventy-two (72) hours to submit to the Mediator a written statement of
their position on the issues of the dispute. The mediator shall provide
the position statements to the team members for their review. Upon
receipt of the position statements, the volunteer arbitrators shall be
unsubscribed from the discussion list during the mediation process.

The issues raised in the initial complaint and in the position
statements of the parties shall be the sole issues for discussion in
either mediation or arbitration. Prior precedent may be considered, but
issues not raised in the complaint or in the position statements will
not be considered.

The mediator may meet with each party separately, discussing the issues
raised and prompting suggestions for a solution, short of the party
receiving their requested goal that would be acceptable. All
correspondence will be accessible to the permanent committee member.

If an amiable agreement is achieved between the parties in the
mediation process, the members of the team shall retire to closed
session to insure that the resolution is appropriate in view of the
goals and requirements of The USGenWeb Project. If no conflict is
found, the resolution agreement will be forwarded to the Grievance
Chair with a recommendation for approval, and the parties so notified
by the mediator. If the resolution agreement is not consistent with the
goals and requirements of The USGenWeb Project after review in closed
session, the team will reconvene with the parties for further
discussion.

Mediation will continue until the matter is resolved, or until it is
apparent to the mediator that there will be no resolution forthcoming,
but for a period of no more than ten (10) days once mediation has begun
without approval of the Grievance Committee. The mediator may request
additional time from the Grievance Committee if it is the the opinion
of the team that a resolution is at hand.

If, after the mediator has worked with both parties for a reasonable
amount of time, and the mediator determines that the movement of one or
both parties will not be sufficient to produce a mediated resolution,
the mediation process is terminated. The Mediator will make a final
recommendation to the Chair as to whether the matter should proceed to
arbitration or whether the matter should be closed. The Committee must
vote on a recommendation to close the grievance without proceeding to
arbitration.

Failure of either party to proceed with mediation in good faith is
grounds for terminating the process.

8 - Arbitration: If the mediation process
fails, and the grievant wishes to continue with the complaint, the
mediator will so advise the volunteer arbitrators. The mediator and the
arbitrators, along with the overseeing committee member, will conduct
the arbitration hearing, with the committee member acting as a
non-voting chair.

The volunteer arbitrators will be re-subscribed to the mail list and
both parties to the grievance will remain subscribed to the list. Both
parties will be given the opportunity to present statements or
evidence. The volunteer arbitrators may request additional information
if they feel it is necessary, or may ask further questions of the
parties involved.

After hearing both sides of the issue, the parties shall be given an
additional seventy-two (72) hours to provide to the chair a written
summation of their position in view of the discussions held.

The chair will provide these summations to each member of the team. The
team shall retire to closed session and come to a recommendation of the
course of action to be taken by the parties to resolve the dispute. The
arbitrators may find for either party, or reach a decision that is a
compromise between the two positions. The arbitrators will make a
recommendation as to what action, if any, should be taken.

The burden of proof of a violation of the by-law, policy, or procedure
cited in the initial complaint is on the person making the allegation.
The decision of the arbitration team will be based on the information
and evidence submitted and applicable USGenWeb and XXGenweb Project
by-laws. Failure of either party to participate in the arbitration
process will result in the decision being made against the
non-participating party in accordance with the information presented.

The recommendation of the Arbitration Team shall be submitted to the
Chair for approval of the Grievance Committee. Upon approval, a written
decision will detail to the parties the findings of the Team and the
actions to be taken by the parties in light of the findings.

The decision of the Arbitration Team becomes the final resolution of
the dispute upon approval of the their recommendation by the Grievance
Committee. Failure of either party or other USGenWeb Project member to
comply with the decision is a violation of the USGenWeb Project Bylaws
and subject to action by the USGenWeb Advisory Board.

9 - Appeals: A party aggrieved by a decision
of the Grievance Committee may make an appeal to the USGenWeb Project
Advisory Board. The Advisory Board will review the appeal to determine
if the Grievance Procedures were followed as set out herein. An appeal
to the Advisory Board is not a rehearing of the issues and the outcome
is either to affirm the determination made by the Grievance Committee,
or a return to the Grievance Committee for reconsideration.

The decision in a grievance may be
appealed only once and that appeal must be filed within 15
days of the decision made by the
Grievance Committee. A notice of intent to file does
not change the 15 day deadline for filing the actual appeal.

A decision by the Committee to reject a grievance may not be appealed
if the Grievant breaks the confidentiality procedures.

Comments and administrative-type problems should be emailed to the National Coordinator. For complaints regarding a specific web site within the USGenWeb Project, please include the URL when emailing the National Coordinator.